Foreign Minister Çolak carries out first official visit to Ankara

Foreign Minister Emine Çolak met with President of the Republic of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu, Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu and EU Minister and Chief Negotiator Volkan Bozkır within the framework of her official visit to Ankara yesterday.

Within the framework of the visit to Ankara, a Memorandum of Understanding regarding cooperation in the field of information technology was signed between Ministries of Foreign affairs of the TRNC and Turkey.

The two Foreign Ministers held a joint press conference following the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding.

Indicating that the Memorandum regarding a secure communication network signed between the TRNC and Turkey is a product of the solidarity and consensus between the two countries, Foreign Minister Emine Çolak stated “Whether there is a settlement or not, we are in need of this contribution and initiative. The Turkish Cypriots are determined to be self-sufficient and stand on their own two feet”.

Minister Çolak emphasized that there has been an ongoing negotiation process on the Island within the framework of the Joint Declaration signed in February 2014 and that the newly established wide-based coalition government supports this process.

Minister Çolak also stated that the TRNC will hold intensified contacts with various organizations thanks to the support and cooperation granted by Turkey throughout the settlement negotiation process.

Turkey’s Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu expressed that Turkey has always supported the ongoing negotiation process on the Island to find a just and viable settlement.

Çavuşoğlu further stated “We would like to see the best consideration of the positive atmosphere that we are seeing on the Island, and hope that this will reflect on a settlement. We would also like to see that this process continues in an expedited manner. We see this determination from both side and welcome it”.

Çavuşoğlu also emphasized the importance of the visible support of the international community and particularly the EU, as well as Greece as a guarantor country, and stated “We convey our thoughts on this to our friends in Greece at every opportunity. The decision to enter a new phase of elections in Greece has been made. We hope that the elections will take place, that the new administration will assume its role and support the process in the shortest possible time.”